GAS WARFARE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 2 October 1939, Page 2

GAS WARFARE

“MOST HUMANE METHOD - DEVISED.” FANTASTIC IDEAS PREVALENT. Some fantastic ideas about gas warfare were touched upon in interesting observations by Mr L. H. Davis, M.Sc., A.N.Z.1.C., in an address given to the Wellington Centre of the New Zealand branch of the Royal Sanitary Institute. The most effective of the so-called gases, he said, were not true gases at all, they were finely dispensed solids and liquids of high boiling point. The pulmonary irritants or lung gases were definitely dangerous, the sneezing gases gave rise to incessant sneezing, the tear gases generally incapacitated for an hour or two but had no aftereffects, the blisterers (such as mustard gas) gave rise to painful blisters when they came into contact with the skin, those causing paralysis or poisoning of the nervous system, and those interfering with the functions of the blood were useless for war. There were four general methods of applicacation, by cylinders, gas shell, bomb and aeroplane spray. From the point of view of civilian populations there were only one or two gas shells which were likely to be used and in New Zealand they were never likely to be up against warfare with gas shells. A wind of 15 to 20 miles an hour rendered all gas practically useless, while rain would wash the air free of all gas in a very short time. The biggest tragedy of the Great War for the Allied forces was the unexpected use of chlorine gas by the Germans. It caused a terrific number of casualties because it was so entirely unprepared for.

Mr Davis said there was no protection yet devised, nor likely to be devised, which would protect a person in very close proximity to a target hit with a Livens bomb, just as there was no protection against a high explosive shell in similar circumstances. Provided a person was masked, and a few feet away, he was quite safe. The service masks that had been devised would stop any of the known gases and the civilian respirators were probably effective against gas in fairly high concentration for three hours. With proper organisation one and a half hours would clear any city of any high concentration of gas. In a gas attack, if precautions were not taken, a person would be badly gassed but if ordinary measures were taken as recommended by the authorities, there was as much chance of being killed as winning the Irish Sweep. In Great Britain there were more people killed on the roads every year than were killed by gas in the Great War. Although not approving gas warfare nor upholding war as a means of settling international disputes, Mr Davis said that if war was inevitable, gas warfare was the most humane method yet devised. In war it was really far more important to wound the enemy than to kill him. One casualty, non-fatal, would require three or four persons to look after him, taking into account the whole necessary organisation while a fatal casualty would be written off as a total loss. The average mustard gas case had to be removed from the line, spend four weeks or so in base hospital and was back on duty from three to six months later and they could rely on having four or five people tied up looking after him the whole of that time. To an attacker another very valuable attribute of gas was the panic it would cause amongst unprotected people. The first German gas attacks found the Allies in the Great War completely unprotected but the German Command had not foreseen anything like its effect and were completely unprepared for its success. By the time they had recovjered from the shock, the opportunity to finish the war was gone. Military observers seemed to agree that had Germany had the necessary organisation, and followed up her advantage, the war would have been over in weeks. Instead, Germany proceeded to try out in small patches the suggestions of her chemists, whereas had she flooded areas there would have been little to prevent her walking into Paris.